0 COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY RESEARCH IN CHEMISTRY

JOHN I. MATTILL Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

T w o out of three chemists on thefacultiesof American colleges and universities now have one or more research projects underway. These studies-and the graduate- level teaching and administration associated with them -take a t least half the time of those faculty members involved. A full-time research staff of over 1300 senior workers would be needed to equal the research effort this represents.

Yet there remains room for still more research with- out sacrificing teaching in the chemistry departments a t most educational institutions. Today, with an urgent need for all scientific and technical studies, the problem is to find and fill the holes in this national pattern of chemical research activity.

A survey of American college and university research resources .hy the Ekgineering College Research Council shows a total of 3711 faculty and full-time senior re- search staff members in chemistry a t 476 institutions. Of these, 89 per cent are considered by their institutions to be qualified for research, and 73 per cent of these potential researchers have projects underway.

There are 6949 graduate students and junior staff memhers now engaged in research in chemistry, and they, too, spend about half time on their projects.

The Engineering College Research Council survey covered all physical and engineering sciences. Chemis- try ranked a t the top of the list, with more faculty members and graduate students-and more research underway-than in any other of the fields surveyed. In all, over 24,000 faculty members and an equal num- ber of graduate students were reported. Chemists numbered 15 per cent of the total in both categories.

The survey project was undertaken by the Engineer- ing College Research Council, a unit of the American Society for Engineering Education, a t the suggestion and with the cooperation of the Department of Defense Research and Development Board. It was completed under the direction of the Research Council's Commit- tee on Relations with Military Research Agencies, of which Dean A. F. Spilhaus of the University of Minne- sota is chairman.' The first report of results was made

1 Members of the Committee, in addition to Dean Spilhaus, are Dr. A. P. Colbun, University of Delaware; Dean W. L. Everitt, University of Illinois; Professor F. B. Farquharson, University of Washington; Dr. C. W. Good, University of Michiem: Dr. Paul E. Klo~stee. Northwestern Universitv: ~ G i d o e n t ' ~ . R. Van Pelt, ~ontana-~chool of Mines; and ~ e z Eric A. Walker, Pennsylvania Sthte College. Dr. Gerald A. Rosselot, Georgia Institute of Technology, is chairmm of the Council.

by Dean Spilhaus a t the 1951 annual meeting of the A.S.E.E.2

To compile a national inventory of college and uni- versity research potential, the Committee sought data from all four-year educational institutions on the num- bers of faculty available, their present research commit- ments, and their special interests and qualifications. Though aware of the shortcomings of the questionnaire process, the Committee adopted that method as being the only possible way to meet the recommended time schedule and to yield data suitable for mechanical processing and comparison.

Only 250 of the nation's 1000 four-year colleges and universities failed to make specific reports on personnel, present research commitments, and special interests. An informal review of this list of schools from which no replies were received suggests to the committee that "substantially all" of the national potential for research in colleges and universities in the physical and engineer- ing sciences is reported.

Of the 750 .colleges replying, 513 listed personnel qualified for research in one or more of the physical and engineering sciences. The remaining 237 replied that their staffs were not active in these fields. The totals, from the 513 schools, are shown in Table 1. In sum- mary, they show:

1. Nearly 25,000 faculty members in all physical and engineering sciences.

2. Of these, 20,000 are considered qualified to par- ticipate in research.

3. At least 12,700 of these are now active in re- search.

4. An average of 27 per cent of all faculty time is spent on research.

5. At least 45 per cent of this research time is al- ready devoted to defense proiects-studies sponsored by military agencies, the Atomic Energy Commission or their industrial contractors.

"Putting these figures another way," Dean A. F. Spilhaus of the University of Minnesota pointed out, "of the 25,000 faculty members reported, one-half are active in research; these spend about one-half of their time in research, and one-half of this is devoted to military research. This means that one-eighth of the total college effort in these fields of engineering and vhvsical sciences is already devoted to defense research."

8 Snmnus, A. F., A N D JOHN I. MATTILL, "Summary of Resources for University Research," Journal of Engineering Edumlia, Vol. 42, No. 5, (January, 1952), pp. 270-9.

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NOVEMBER, 1952 557

More research is now underway in chemistry than in lent to the full-time work of 3468 junior research staff any other of the engineering and physical sciences. members. The ratio of junior to senior staff, 6949 to Chemists are second only to physicists in their contri- 3711, is considerably higher in chemistry than in most of bution to defense research. Together, chemistry and the engineering and physical sciences covered. physics account for one-third of the defense research A broad range of chemical fields is represented by this total; nearly one-half is in the three areas of chemistry, research manpower. Schools surveyed were asked to physics, and electronics. "This," the Committee re- indicate areas in which one or more faculty were port notes, "is convincing evidence that colleges and experienced and qualified, and the full report of the proj- universities are maintaining emphasis on the funda- ect3 identifies the schools and details the personnel re- mental sciences. They must continue to resist the sources reported by each. Organic chemistry, physical temptations to undertake extensive assignments in chemistry, analytical chemistry methods, and inorganic applied research and development." chemistry-in that order--were the most popular cate-

gories. SUBSTANTIAL CHEMISTRY RESEARCH RESOURCES

The Engineering College Research Council's figures THE DISTRIBUTION OF CHEMISTRY RESEARCH

show 3711 faculty members and full-time senior re- Where are these chemistry research resources? search personnel in chemistry in 476 schools. Of these Research now underway in chemistry shows a distri-

TABLE 1 College and University Research in Physical end Enginesdng Sciences

Total number Number? Numbw of Number of Numbw of Number of Number of of faculty and ( A ) consc ( A ) no? full-time re- "equivalents" graduate full-lime

full-time eyed quali- myaged zn search wwkms in (D) %our en- students and workers to research per- jied to do re- reseawk to which ( C ) gaged in de- assistants en- which ( F ) is

sonml search is equivalent fense wsearch gaged i n re- equivalent sea~eh

A R C D E F C

Aeronautical engineering 652 597 437 289.7 236.8 566 284.2 Astronomy 279 247 1Ml 105.3 39.5 225 130.1 Ceramics 216 200 156 108.8 42.0 215 122.0 Chemical engineering 735 701 564 279.8 99.4 1,699 807.4 Chemistry 3,711 3,320 2,436 1,316.1 506.2 6,949 3,468.4 Civil and sanitary engineering 1,698 1,429 654 313.6 112.1 936 443.1 Earth scienoes 1,448 1,322 964 452.4 172.0 2,086 861.5 Elecbrical engineering 1,497 1,238 602 288.1 219.1 1,125 456.5 Electronics 1,119 1,032 626 387.2 313.8 1,107 557.8 Food technology 755 634 420 272.6 52.6 692 346.7 Industrial engineering 536 421 173 77.1 14.1 352 108.9 Marine engineering 78 i l 35 17.7 12.5 24 13.9 Mathematics 3,297 2,262 1,167 570.0 209.3 1,496 640.7 Meehani~al engineering 2,003 1 , 6 6 0 716 327.1 150.5 1,120 434.5 Mechanics 964 821 426 213.3 119.3 557 244.6 Metallurgical engineering 488 458 349 187.6 131.7 757 387.7 Mining engineering 136 129 82 44.4 11.0 129 50.0 Petroleum and fuels engineering 209 195 112 72.7 12.5 197 81.7 Physics 2,628 2,272 1,546 866.6 609.3 3,392 1,562.1 Psychology and human resources 2,432 2,029 1 242 554.7 227.1 3,162 1,141.0 -

Totals 24,881 21,038 12,866 6,744.8 3,290.8 24,786 12,142.8

3320 are judged qualified to participate in research proj- ects, and 2436 of them are now engaged in research. This effort is equivalent to the work of a full-time re- search st& of 1316 and of these "equivalents" 506 would be engaged in defense projects for military agen- cies or their contractors.

These figures seem to show that research accounts for slightly more than one-fifth of the total college effort in chemistry; and of this research nearly 40 per cent is devoted to studies for defense. This means that, on an average, 14 per cent of today's total college effort in chemistry is expended on defense research. In some schools with heavy defense assignments this figure is far h ighe~perhaps to the detriment of effective teach- ing.

A total of 6949 graduate students and assistants in chemistry research was reported by the survey, equiva-

bution which is typical of that found in all the physical and engineering sciences. Expansion of research to meet new national needs seems to depend on effective decentralization.

Of the 3711 chemistry faculty and senior research workers, 2070 (56 per cent) are at 104 large universities; institutions with extensive professional and graduate schools. Nine out of ten of these teachers are consid- ered qualified to do research, and nine out of ten of these qualified faculty members have research underway. According to the institutions' reports, those teachers who have research underway spend nearly 60 per cent of their time on these studies, almost half of which are

8 Copies of this full report, entitled "University Research Potential,l," are available from the Secretary of the Engineering College Research Council at Room 7-204, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge 39, Massachusetts, at $1.00 each.

558 JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION

TABLE 2 Distribution of Collerre and Universitv Chemistrv Research

Total Number Number Number oj Numbet of Proportion number of o j ( A ) of ( A ) full-time "equivalents"

famltg and eonszdered m reseaxh i n ( D ) now ;f,";,"'$f full-time quaii$ied engaged workera engaged i n with no research to do i n lo which ( C ) defense ~esearch i n

personnel research research is equivalent ~esearch progress A B C D E

Nine universities with most defense re- search in progress 324 297 291 177.0 132.0

Ninety-five other major universities - 1746 1591 798.3 282.2 - 1381 - -

Tots1 at 104 major universities - -

2070 1888 1672 975.3 414.2 Total at 93 smaller universities 644 5fi4 249 161.8 21.5 38%

11%

Total at 279 liberal arts colleges 997 - 868 415 179.0 70.5 52% - - - - -~ Total at 476 colleges and universities 3711 3320 2436 1316.1 506.2

sponsored by defense agencies, as shown in Table 2. At 372 other schools-including smaller universities,

teachers colleges, and liberal arts colleges-are 1641 chemistry faculty members. Nine out of ten of these teachers, too, are considered qualified for research, hut fewer than half of those qualified have any research in progress. Those who do have research underway de- vote only 27 per cent of their time to it, and less than one-third of this work is for defense needs.

To summarize: Threequarters of the college and university chemistry research are a t 104 major univer- sities, in the hands of just over half of the nation's total of qualified faculty members. The other half of the qualified chemistry teachers, a t 372 smaller schools, share the remaining one-quarter of all research. The chances appear to he nine in ten that a qualified chemist in a large university will have research opportunities as a part of his academic work. At a smaller institution, a similarly qualified teacher has only an even chance of getting research underway.

THE CONCENTRATION OF CHEMISTRY DEFENSE RESEARCH

Chemistry research under military sponsorship shows a still more distinct trend to concentration. The 104 major universities now have 81 per cent of all chemistry studies made possible by federal defense money.

Nine of these large school^,^ with 9 per cent of the nation's total qualified faculty members, are doing 26 per cent of all the defensesponsored chemistry research in the United States. At these schools, only six of the 297 qualified faculty members are without research assignments. Those who have research in progress spend 60 per cent of their time in their laboratories, and nearly threequarters of their efforts go to defense studies. .

This is not the whole story, of course; it needs qualification and some reservations. Large univer- sities, with many graduate students, have vastly more resources which are appropriate to advanced research.

4 The nine are University of Minnesota, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Carnegie Institute oi Technology, University of Illinois, University of Michigan, Ohio State University, University of California (Berkeley), Johns Hopkins University, and Oregon State College.

Where there are many graduate students, the research of these students in meeting their advanced degree re- quirements involves faculty members. This records as "research time" though it is well within any definition of teaching duties.

Despite these reservations, however, there is oh- viously an uneven distribution of chemistry research opportunities weighted in the direction of the larger institutions.

LOCATION OF UNTAPPED RESEARCH RESOURCES

The Engineering College Research Council's survey was prompted by the growing scarcity of research talent to meet the needs for more fundamental research. These needs became acute shortly after the Korean war, and since then research and development in the physical and engineering sciences have been limited not by avail- able funds hut by available research manpower. Ac- cording to Research and Development Board figures, the total military research and development budget has risen from $500 million before Korea to $1.3 billion in 1952. Colleges and universities were responsible for 9 per cent of the 1951 research and development total; they must have at least this same share of the consider- ably larger 1952 effort? "Fully effective use of college and university resources," the Engineering College Research Council Committee predicted, "may con- siderably raise the ceiling placed on research and development progress."

According to the survey's figures, there are 3320 chemists in colleges and universities who are now qualified for research. Of these, 884 have no research in progress. II each of these "unemployed" chemistry faculty takes on one-third time research, the total of chemistry research in these schools rvill be increased by the equivalent of 295 full-time workers, a growth of 22 per cent.

Where is this potential for increased service? In the "big nine" universities with the largest share of

defense research only six qualified faculty members have no studies underway. In 104 large universities, includine this "bie nine" mourn are 216 faculty mem-

WALKER, ERIC A., "Research and Development: The Nation's Balance Sheet in June, 1951," J o u m l of Engineering Education, Val. 42, No. 3 (November, 1951), pp. 126-33.

NOVEMBER. 1952

hers qualified but not now active in research . This is less than 12 per cent of the total number of qualified teachers in these schools .

At 93 smaller universities and technical s c h o o l s four-year institutions where there is little emphssis on graduate degreesonly 349 out of 564 qualified faculty members have research in progress . The 215 faculty available here represent 38 per cent of the potential a t these institutions .

The 279 liberal arts and teachers colleges which con- tributed to the Research Council's inventory reported 868 quslified faculty members, of whom 453 have no studies underway . Here more than half of the available total remains to be put into research service .

Not a11 these scientists are equally qualified . It is natural that contractors, both military and industrial. who are particularly concerned with getting, a t mini- mum effort. every value for their research dollar have turned first to the largest institutions where talents in widest variety are available . But today's shortage of research manpower suggests revision of this approach; the Engineering College Research Council figures in- dicate that would-be contractors may profitably make a more careful search through the rosters of the smaller faculties .

The lack of certain specialized equipment may also limit the research undertakings a t smaller schools . But manpower is the most critical need; where manpower is available. the Research Council committee believes that necessary equipment to implement research can probably be supplied . And it is far better to move re- search equipment than to move research scientists- particularly when moving the scientists disrupts their teaching programs . THE BENEFITS OF RESEARCH EXPANSION

The national interest clemrly lies in expanding and broadening the research opportunities a t all educational institutions-subject only to the important reservation that the colleges' first purpose and responsibility are their teaching programs . If overemphasized. research can become the tail that wags the dog. pulling teachers out of classrooms and away from their students . Within sensible limits. and properly integrated into academic life. research has important benefits for teachers and

TABLE 3

Number of colleges reporting one or more faculty members interested or competent in research in:

Analytical chemistry methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313 Atomic and nuclear structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Biochemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 Chemical reactions and equilibria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 Chemical thermodynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 Colloidill chemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Eleotraohemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 Inoreanicchemistrv . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Kinetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 Organic chemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Physical chemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Radiochemistry and tracer methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Subjects of specialized research: Agriculture chemistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Alkdies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Cellulose and wood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chemical warfare 45 Detergents and soap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Explosives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Fats, oils, and waxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fermentation 31 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fertilizers 32

Forest products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Germicides insecticides and funeus control 53

Heavy chekicals . . . . : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industrial wastes 92

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nutrition and iood technology 120 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paints, varnishes, and colors 38

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pharmaceutical chemistry 71 . . . . . . . Photochemistry and the chemistry of photography 47

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rubber and related polymers 54 Synthetic resins, fibers, and plastics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile chemistry 25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Watttor and sanitary chemistry 64

their students . Chemists need no itemized list of these gains: research helps schools give more interesting opportunities and better salaries to competent faculty; students benefit directly from an acquaintance with research problems and methods. and indirectly from the faculty's new outlooks which inevitably are the result of research activity .

College and university research is an investment that returns double dividends: While the research results contribute to fundamental knowledge; the projects in progress strengthen the teaching programs and promise more and better-qualified scientific manpower for the future . Today's critical needs provide a remarkable opportunity to broaden college and university research experience and so to capitalize on the benefits it . bestows .